Question

I am using c#.

I have a method that outputs multiple values. I am aware of out but this is a reference type.
Is there anything equivalent to value type but that can also output multiple values from a method. With the reference type, the values are also changed outside of the method so I like to prevent.

    out

Answer 1

I am aware of out but this is a reference type.

It’s not clear what you mean. out isn’t a type at all – it’s a decorator for parameters. You can use it with reference types or value types:

// Nasty, but it does work...
void SplitInTwo(string input, out string x1, out string x2, 
                out int actualSplitCount)
{
    string[] bits = input.Split('/');
    x1 = bits[0];
    x2 = bits[1];
    actualSplitCount = bits.Length;
}

So you can use out either way. However, I would strongly advise you not to do so. You can use the Tuple family of types for ad hoc multiple values, but if the returned values are actually related, you should consider encapsulating them into a separate type, and returning a value of that type.